Dr. Hong's talk will discuss the common misconception in U.S. popular culture that Asian Americans are not funny, unless theyre being made fun of for their physical, cultural, and social difference. Asian American comedy and humor employ the very same mediums that have historically been used to exclude and mark Asian Americans as the racial other, in order to destabilize prevalent images of Asian Americans as the yellow peril, the perpetual foreigner, and the model minority. Through examining the past, present, and future of Asian American comedy and humor, it discusses how Asian American comedic tradition challenges stereotypes and fixed notions of race, gender, sexuality, and class.

Caroline Kyungah Hong is Assistant Professor of English at Queens College CUNY. Her research interests include Asian American studies, comedy and humor, ethnic studies, women writers of color, gender and sexuality studies, race and popular culture (especially film, TV, and comics/graphic narratives), and American studies.